Mets’ Angel Pagan Was on the Can While on Deck, Almost Missed At-Bat

Frankly, I’m shocked this type of situation does not occur more often. People like me who have to go when they have to go have always wondered what athletes do when nature calls abruptly at an inopportune moment. In a world full of Steve DelVecchios, pitchers would be leaving the mound in the middle of games and quarterbacks would be bailing in the middle of the two-minute drill. In other words I know exactly how you feel, Angel Pagan.

According to the NY Daily News, Pagan was nowhere to be found when he was on deck in the top of the fifth inning Monday night. Had he pulled a Carlos Zambrano and exited the stadium? Not quite. Pagan simply had a bathroom emergency. When Nick Evans walked and it was time for Pagan to step to the plate, home plate umpire Mike DiMuro had to go walking over to the Mets dugout to see what was going on.

“I told the trainer, I have to go to the bathroom,” Pagan said. “When you’re up fourth in the inning and you have to do that, it’s just not fun.”

Pagan said he was on the can and had just finished when he looked at the TV and saw that the count was full to Evans. He made it out onto the field in time — albeit a little tardy — and grounded out to end the inning. Take it from a person who once had to relieve himself in a back alley of one of toughest suburbs outside of Boston: I ain’t mad at ya, Angel.